SF 2485

as introduced - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 03/15/2019 09:06am

A bill for an act
relating to economic development; creating a child care economic grant program;
appropriating money.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin CHILD CARE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GRANT PROGRAM.
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new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Establishment. new text end

new text begin A grant program is established under the Department of
Employment and Economic Development to award grants to eligible local communities to
increase the availability of child care in order to reduce the child care shortage in the
community, and support increased workforce participation, business expansion and retention,
and new business location.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the
meanings given them:
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new text begin (1) "commissioner" means the commissioner of employment and economic development;
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new text begin (2) "child care" has the meaning given in section 119B.011;
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new text begin (3) "political subdivision" means a county, statutory or home rule charter city, or school
district; and
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new text begin (4) "Indian tribe" means one of the federally recognized Minnesota tribes listed in section
3.922, subdivision 1, clause (1).
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new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Eligible expenditures. new text end

new text begin The commissioner may make grants under this section
to implement solutions to reduce the child care shortage in the state including but not limited
to funding for child care business start-ups or expansions, training, facility modifications
or improvements required for licensing, and assistance with licensing and other regulatory
requirements.
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new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Eligible applicants. new text end

new text begin Eligible applicants for grants awarded under this section
include:
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new text begin (1) a political subdivision;
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new text begin (2) an Indian tribe;
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new text begin (3) a Minnesota nonprofit organization organized under chapter 317 having experience
in one or more of the following: the operation of, planning for, financing of, advocacy for,
or advancement of the delivery of child care services in a defined service area spanning the
boundaries of one or more political subdivisions.
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new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Application process. new text end

new text begin (a) An eligible applicant must submit an application to
the commissioner on a form prescribed by the commissioner. The commissioner shall
develop procedures governing the application and grant award process. The commissioner
shall act as fiscal agent for the grant program and shall be responsible for receiving and
reviewing grant applications and awarding grants under this section.
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new text begin (b) At least 30 days prior to the first day applications may be submitted each fiscal year,
the commissioner must publish on the department's website the specific criteria and any
quantitative weighting scheme or scoring system the commissioner will use to evaluate or
rank applications and award grants under subdivision 6.
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new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Application contents. new text end

new text begin An applicant for a grant under this section shall provide
the following information on the application:
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new text begin (1) the service area of the project;
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new text begin (2) the project budget;
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new text begin (3) evidence of the child care shortage in the community in which the project is to be
located;
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new text begin (4) the number of licensed child care slots that will be created as a result of the project;
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new text begin (5) the number of families with children under age six that will have access to child care
as a result of the project;
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new text begin (6) community employers and businesses that will benefit from the proposed project;
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new text begin (7) evidence of community support for the project;
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new text begin (8) the total cost of the project;
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new text begin (9) sources of funding or in-kind contributions for the project that will supplement any
grant award; and
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new text begin (10) any additional information requested by the commissioner.
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new text begin Subd. 7. new text end

new text begin Awarding grants. new text end

new text begin (a) In evaluating applications and awarding grants, the
commissioner may give priority to applications that:
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new text begin (1) are in areas that have a documented shortage of affordable quality child care;
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new text begin (2) demonstrate programmatic or financial collaborations and partnering among private
sector employers, public and nonprofit organizations within geographic areas;
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new text begin (3) serve areas of the state experiencing worker shortages, low prime age workforce
participation rates, or prime age worker population loss that is significantly greater than the
statewide average;
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new text begin (4) provide evidence of strong support for the project from citizens, government,
businesses, and institutions in the community;
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new text begin (5) leverage greater amounts of funding for the project from private and nonstate public
sources.
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new text begin (b) The commissioner shall endeavor to award grants under this section to qualified
applicants in all regions of the state.
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new text begin Subd. 8. new text end

new text begin Limitation. new text end

new text begin (a) No grant awarded under this section may fund more than 50
percent of the total cost of a project.
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new text begin (b) Grants awarded to a single project under this section must not exceed $100,000.
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Sec. 2. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
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new text begin $500,000 in fiscal year 2020 and $500,000 in fiscal year 2021 are appropriated from the
general fund to the commissioner of employment and economic development for the child
care economic grant program in section 1. This is a onetime appropriation.
new text end